Chapter 2668 It’s raining in Nancheng tonight 29

Xie Linzhou looked around the room, and only when he heard Jin Chen tell him to take two hangover pills did he suddenly remember.

He grabbed Jin Chen's hand and, without saying a word, stubbornly headed towards the bar counter next to the living room.

"I want to drink beer."

Jin Chen was pulled along by him, finding it somewhat amusing, "Still drinking? You've had enough tonight."

“I want a drink you make,” Xie Linzhou stopped and turned to look at him, his eyes unusually serious, “the kind you make just for me.”

Xie Linzhou's obsession was becoming incredibly strong. Only the warm yellow ambient light above the bar counter was on in the room, the light like the afterglow of the setting sun, making the grievances and longing in his eyes alluring.

"I'll make you something tomorrow, okay? You're really drunk right now." Jin Chen tried to reason with the drunkard.

Xie Linzhou disagreed, showing no signs of maturity or composure despite being older than Jin Chen.

He hooked Jin Chen's finger around his and shook it gently. "Today at the bar, you mixed drinks for them, but you didn't mix any for me."

Xie Linzhou looked at Jin Chen more seriously and stated a very serious fact.

"I'm really jealous."

Seeing that Xie Linzhou seemed to be waiting for her reaction, Jin Chen indulgently ruffled her hair and said, "Okay, I'll adjust it for you."

He pulled Xie Linzhou to sit down on a high stool, then turned to the side to take out the tools.

Considering Xie Linzhou's intoxicated state, Jin Chen specially prepared a non-alcoholic beverage, since he wouldn't be able to taste the difference in his current condition anyway.

Xie Linzhou took the brightly colored drink, took a small sip next to Jin Chen, savored it carefully, and looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

"What's the name of this wine?"

Jin Chen bent his knuckles and gently stroked his still slightly damp cheek with his knuckles. "Tears."

Xie Linzhou frowned, puzzled by the name. He lowered his head and took another sip, trying to discern the taste. He could indeed detect a faint bitterness.

"Tears..." he murmured, "Why are they bitter?"

Jin Chen leaned closer, the two of them so close that they could hear each other's breaths.

He asked softly, "Yes, why?"

Xie Linzhou blinked, tears still clinging to his eyelashes.

He hesitated for a few seconds before slowly realizing what was happening, his voice lowering, tinged with a sense of realization.

"So... it was me crying."

Tonight, Xie Linzhou's stubborn wish was finally fulfilled. He put the cup back on the table, wrapped his arms around Jin Chen's neck, and leaned closer to her.

Xie Linzhou rested his chin on Jin Chen's shoulder, his lips close to Jin Chen's ear, his breath warm and moist.

"I miss you so much……"

Jin Chen didn't say anything, but pulled Xie Linzhou into his arms, gently squeezing the back of his neck with one hand. The pressure was light, and he could only feel the warmth from his palm.

Xie Linzhou didn't want to just hold him like that, so he pulled Jin Chen down to sit, then awkwardly straddled him, wrapped his arms tightly around his waist, and buried his face in the crook of his neck.

"Why don't you come to find me if you miss me? Why are you hiding?" Jin Chen asked softly, brushing aside the stray hairs on Xie Linzhou's forehead that were damp with tears and sweat.

Xie Linzhou squinted, the dim light casting a hazy gray hue in his eyes, his consciousness gradually becoming scattered and confused under the influence of alcohol.

But some things, which I've thought about repeatedly in my heart for so many days, are not difficult to say now.

"I miss you..." he said softly, "but I can't look for you, it's not fair to you..."

Xie Linzhou snuggled against Jin Chen in his arms, his lips almost touching the bare skin on Jin Chen's neck.

Xie Linzhou stared intently at that spot of skin for a few seconds, but in the end, he simply touched his cheek gently and affectionately with the tip of his nose.

"What should I do..." Overwhelmed by extreme drowsiness, Xie Linzhou's voice became hoarse, as if he were talking in his sleep.

The moment he leaned closer, Jin Chen instinctively tilted her head back, her Adam's apple bobbing.

He tightened his grip on Xie Linzhou's waist, paused for a moment, and then said in a low voice, "If you remember what happened tonight after you wake up... then ask me again."

Xie Linzhou relaxed and didn't say anything more, but heard this sentence before he completely fell asleep.

-

The heavy feeling from the hangover left Xie Linzhou feeling dizzy when he woke up, and it took him a while to slowly sit up.

He has always been a good drinker, and he wasn't actually drunk to the point of unconsciousness last night. Therefore, everything that happened from when Jin Chen picked him up from the private room to what happened later in the car and at home was understandable.

He remembers every detail, even his drunken outbursts and words.

Xie Linzhou closed his eyes and sighed dejectedly.

How did it turn out like this again?

I promised myself I'd stay calm and think things through, but the moment I saw someone and had a few drinks, I completely collapsed and lost all my composure.

Xie Linzhou suddenly remembered something, pushed open the bedroom door and went out.

The living room was quiet; Jin Chen wasn't there.

Xie Linzhou glanced around the living room and looked at the bar counter, where the "Tears" drink that Jin Chen had mixed for him last night was still on the counter.

He picked up the cup, which was still half full, and took a sip. It tasted delicious.

It wasn't wine at all, nor did it taste bitter.

Xie Linzhou held the cup, his lips unconsciously curving upwards. His heart was filled with a bittersweet feeling. He leaned against the counter and slowly finished the remaining half-cup of drink, wanting to betray the self that had proposed breaking up half a month ago.

He can't let go, not even a little bit.

I still like it very much, so much so that it hurts my heart.

He was still unwilling to accept it; unwilling to accept that from now on, he and Jin Chen would become two parallel lines that would never intersect again.

Suddenly hearing the door open, Xie Linzhou subconsciously put the empty cup back on the table. Before he could figure out how to face Jin Chen, he turned around somewhat awkwardly and met Jin Chen's gaze as she pushed the door open and entered.

[The villain's darkening value is detected -15, totaling 50! 】

Jin Chen saw Xie Linzhou standing in the living room. He bent down with a normal expression, placed the file bag on the entryway cabinet, and put the umbrella into the umbrella basket.

Xie Linzhou looked away, his heart beating a little fast.

His fingers, hanging by his side, curled unconsciously for a moment before he finally spoke in a low voice, "Jin Chen..."

Jin Chen changed into slippers and walked in, her gaze falling on him, and responded with a sound of agreement.

Without the courage emboldened by being drunk, it was incredibly difficult for Xie Linzhou to say those words while sober.

Each word seemed to have to be brewed in the throat a thousand times before one could muster the courage to say it.

But we must continue.

“I said before…break up,” Xie Linzhou took a deep breath, forced himself to raise his head and look into Jin Chen’s eyes, “It was because I wanted to escape. I couldn’t stand the feeling of being deceived, and I didn’t want you to suffer and still have to coax me.”

“I thought…” Xie Linzhou sighed slowly and heavily, his heart aching, “I thought that as long as we separated, everything would get back on track.”

"But no, I can't handle it. I'll feel even worse if I can't see you. I still miss you."

Xie Linzhou choked back a sob, "Jinchen, I don't want to break up."

Jin Chen listened quietly, then walked up to Xie Linzhou and looked at him in silence.

The silence was like torture for Xie Linzhou, as if the world had stopped, leaving only his soul struggling in pain, worry, helplessness, and sorrow.

Xie Linzhou couldn't help but wonder if Jin Chen felt the same way when he broke up with her that night. The more he thought about it, the more regretful and bitter he felt.

Jin Chen gently rubbed Xie Linzhou's shoulder to ease his tension. "If we want to get back together, we need to resolve the issues from before, right?"

Xie Linzhou bit down on the thin flesh inside his mouth and nodded.

He recalled Jin Chen's words from last night, "Does what you said last night still count? I remember everything."

Jin Chen's gaze was deep, as if trying to see into his heart. "So, were your previous concerns really just because you didn't want to be deceived?"

Xie Linzhou's expression shifted slightly, and he was about to say yes when Jin Chen raised her hand and pressed her fingertips to his lips, stopping him from uttering the words that were about to come out.

"Think about it."

Xie Linzhou was slightly startled by the warm touch on his lips, but then relaxed.

He gently hooked Jin Chen's finger, which was pressed against his lips, and his anxiety subsided, allowing him to think things through carefully.

Is that really all there is to it?